Pubdate: 27 Sep, 1999
Source: Daily Telegraph (UK)
Copyright: of Telegraph Group Limited 1999
Contact:  http://www.telegraph.co.uk/
Author: George Jones, Political Editor

ALL CRIMINAL SUSPECTS TO FACE DRUG TEST

Mandatory drug tests for all those arrested for criminal offences were 
foreshadowed by Tony Blair yesterday as part of a Government initiative to 
reduce levels of drug-related crime.

Admitting he was "petrified about drugs", he said ministers were 
considering the refusal of bail to those on hard drugs such as cocaine or 
heroin who were likely to go "straight back out on the streets and commit 
criminal offences".

His decision to break with convention and make public the centrepiece of 
the forthcoming Queen's Speech was intended to divert attention from 
reports of Cabinet feuds and clashes with the unions on the opening day of 
Labour's centenary conference in Bournemouth. It was also an attempt to 
demonstrate that he was tackling issues of public concern amid signs of 
growing disillusionment over the Government's failure to deliver on its 
election promises.

A Gallup poll for The Telegraph published today shows only a minority of 
voters think Tony Blair is proving "outstanding" as Prime Minister. On 
issues such as the health service, education, public transport and crime 
prevention, the Government's ratings remain relatively low.

Mr Blair used an interview on BBC Television's Breakfast With Frost to 
announce that a Crime and Justice Bill would be the main focus of the new 
legislative programme. He described the link between crime and drug-taking 
as one of the biggest problems the country was facing.

Mr Blair said: "People are petrified about drugs. I'm petrified about drugs 
in respect of my own and other people's children." Jack Straw, the Home 
Secretary, said the link between drug users and crime was "huge and very 
disturbing". It was estimated there were up to 200,000 problem drug users 
in England and Wales, of whom 50,000 to 60,000 were arrested each year.

Mr Straw told Radio 4's World This Weekend: "Each of those will have been 
committing scores, if not hundreds, of crimes each year in order to feed 
their habit." Home Office sources said later that if an arrested person was 
found to be using hard drugs, the police would argue against bail, or 
insist on strict conditions such as attendance at a rehabilitation programme.

The Government was also considering random drug tests for those on 
probation or given community sentences - "so they don't see the probation 
officer one day and go thieving the next".

John Wadham, director of the civil rights group Liberty, criticised the 
move to mandatory drug testing, claiming it risked breaching the European 
Convention on Human Rights. He said: "The Government should drop the 
superficial macho rhetoric and establish a Royal Commission to undertake a 
radical review of drugs policy in this country."

Home Office officials rejected complaints from the civil liberties lobby, 
arguing that the initiative was aimed at reducing crimes such as 
burglaries, thefts from cars and muggings that were used to finance drug 
habits. Mandatory tests would enable the authorities to identify and treat 
drug users sooner.

Mr Blair had earlier denied that he was seeking to win three general 
elections. He said: "I have never said I want to serve three terms. I have 
never said I want to be like Mrs Thatcher and go on and on and on."

In a question-and-answer session with delegates yesterday, he claimed the 
Government was in a stronger position mid-term than previous governments 
because it had managed the economy well. 
- ---
MAP posted-by: Thunder